This beautiful wedding took place at a lovely garden setting at a hotel on Oahu. My charming husband was going to be officiating, so we got to leave our three pesky children behind and fly to Honolulu together. I don't normally fly for weddings, but for some reason, we felt led to make an exception for this one.
Branden and Allison were so warm and friendly, and they were so apparantly madly in love with each other. Both of their families were with them, it was kind of like a family destination wedding. I've met few families in my life that were as caring and respectful of each other as theirs.
When we arrived at the hotel, we were led to the gardens. It was the perfect day, not too hot, but bright and cheery. The wedding would commence in about 5 minutes, so I quickly set up my gear and started shooting away.
Branden and Allison chose to do the traditional first look as she was walking down the aisle. The emotion that flowed from both of them as they saw each other was overwhelming. The ceremony was a special one, with the uniting of sand, as opposed to unity candles, which is traditional in Hawai'i and self written vows. There were many tearful moments.
As we were enjoying our time taking formal shots afterward, I asked Allison what she did for a profession. She dodged the question at first but I persisted. She finally came out with it. "I'm a photography instructor". What?!?! Here I was a newbie in the industry, and I was flown off island to photograph a photography instructor? I freaked out in a very professional way and she laughed, I didn't want to tell you because I didn't want you to feel nervous. Smart thinking on her part. Too bad I sabotaged her plan.
I managed to keep it together and the rest of the night was scerene. The reception was in a little banquet room and I managed to capture some pretty special moments. Can I just say that I love being a Kauai wedding photographer?!
